Crimson Teardrops
by dreamfairy06
Summary: Usagi has taken her own life and is now stuck on earth as a ghost. For a year no one has seen her. No one until the day she went to a certain flower shop. Suddenly her after life is intwined with two *very* different groups.
1. Prolouge

Author Notes:

Thank you to all who reviewed Agony Manor, I *am* working on the next chap…I just appear to be stuck _;;;

Thank you *so* much to my Oneesan Usa-chan. If it weren't for her none of my works would have ever been posted. *Hugs* Thank you ^_^

This story takes place after Chaos and after Takatori, Nagi is sixteen, Usagi seventeen and everyone else stays the same. 

Alright, I don't own any of the characters (All though that would be wonderful ^.~) so enjoy the story ^.~

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

She was bleeding again. Not that that was anything new, she _had_ been thinking about 'it'. If she could just stop she wouldn't bleed. But it was just so hard. All she had now were the memories and even if she looked at the good it would eventually lead up to 'it'. She looked down at the gashes. Two long, identical gashes on each arm going from wrist to elbow. The bleeding was starting to stop now and the blood beginning to disappear.

A girl and her mother walked past but didn't seem to see her. No one did, not anymore. Not now that she was dead. It had been that way for a year now. All she did was wander and watch her friends and family move on and continue their lives.

And him.

She tried not to watch him, that would cause the blood but…he had moved on much quicker then the rest. Just as if he never really cared. Shit. She was bleeding again. But what was new? Maybe one day something interesting would happen. Maybe one day…

There went Shingo. He was headed for the house so school must have been out. She might as well follow him and see how her family was doing even though she had just seen them that morning. She phased next to him, a nifty trick that came with the position. That and people can hear you talking if they listen hard enough. Or if you talk into their ear. She had done that trick to comfort her friends and family when they had…found her…body. Damn, at this rate she would never stop bleeding. She felt the strange feeling of walking through something and realized she was home.

"Shingo! I'm so proud of the grade you made on your test. Here, have a slice of apple pie. It just came out of the oven."

"Thank you."

It was really quite sad. Ever since her death he didn't talk as much. Oh their mom tried everything but nothing seemed to work. She could see it in their moms eyes how much it hurt her to see him like that. But their mom kept smiling to prove everything was okay. But that didn't stop him from crying in his sleep every night about how sorry he was for all the names he called her. She had tried wrapping her arms around him but the contact freaked him out and he had walked away. 

So she watched. 

Watched them all suffer cause of her stupidity. And his lack of concern…she did it again. The blood fell to the floor in rivers, staining the white carpet in a puddle of crimson. They wouldn't notice it though. She phased to her bedroom and laid on her bed. Despite her being dead her mom decided that none of her stuff would be moved. That her daughter would always have a place to come home to. She might have started crying if she hadn't thought she lost the ability to do so. That wasn't true. She was just tired of crying. It didn't get you anywhere and once you were done all you had was a headache and puffy eyes. She had spent most of her life crying over stupid things but what she would give to go back to that. 

Think of something else.

The room was unusually clean and tidy. Her mom must have been in here again. But no matter how much she tried to clean the carpet there was still a large faint brownish discoloring. A sad reminder of what exactly had gone on in the room. Arg! This was driving her crazy. No matter what she did her thoughts traveled back to that night. No matter where she went there was some reminder of what she used to have. Even in death the Ginzuishou stayed with her. Only now it was a useless chunk of crystal. Dim and cold, just like her. She sighed. There had to be something out there that could get her mind off depressing matters. Maybe if she went for a walk. She remembered hearing some girls talk about a flower shop and the cute guys who worked there. The guys didn't really interest her but maybe the flowers could cheer her up. It was worth a shot.

The shop was small and crowded mainly due to the mob of schoolgirls squeezing the oxygen out of the room in an attempt to gain the attention of two guys. She had to admit they were cute. The redhead was dark and brooding while the other was an exact opposite with brownish blonde hair and a sunny disposition. She felt sorry for him though cause it appeared the girls were attempting to molest him. Wasn't her place though. She'd just find the roses and watch everything like always. Looking around the room she found a whole variety of them tucked away in the corner and made her way to them. 

She loved the white ones. So clean and seemingly untouched by anything. The petals were soft like velvet as her fingertips grazed over them. A sad smile formed on her lips. She would have stolen one but it might have caused a panic to see a floating flower, even if it was only for a second. 

"Can I help you miss?"

She snapped out of her trance and looked up to find herself looking into large blue eyes. There was no one behind her, he was standing in front of her, so that meant one thing.

He could see her. 


	2. one

Notes. I want to thank everyone who reviewed. Thank you. 

First off…it may appear that this is one of your typical Mamorou betrays Usagi for petty reasons but…its **NOT**. You have to keep reading to find out exactly what happened between the two of them. Please do not flame me based on your belief that I'm being unoriginal. You just have to trust me ^.~

Phedre no Delaunay~ thanks for your support. If I need help I'll take you up on your offer. I'm not sure who I'm gonna pair her up with, if any. Nagi *is* on my mind though ^.~ 

SA2-chan~Thank you. I'm really grateful that people want to help me. If I need you I'll ask ^^ She committed suicide. All will be explained in due time ^.~ The Aya thing…-_- that was just me not thinking. I made it all better in this chappie though ^-^

To my Oneesan Usa-chan…you already know what I have to say to you ^.~

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Chapter One ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

This girl seemed to be totally surprised he was talking to her. Her pale blue, almost white eyes stared at him in shock. She had caught his attention from her appearance. There were no shoes on her feet and she was wearing pink pajama bottoms and a matching spaghetti top. What was equally strange, aside from the cloths and eyes, was her skin. Colorless white skin that seemed to glow faintly. She had seemed so sad so he broke free of the girls crowding him and came up to her. Hence the reason she was staring at him.

She wrapped her arms around her waist so quickly it mad him a bit curious as to what she might have been hiding. He was just about to repeat the question when she spoke, her voice soft and airy and he must have been hearing things but it seemed to faintly echo. 

"No, I'm just looking, thank you. My names Usagi…you are?"

"Oh, um, Omi. It's nice to meet you. I've never seen you before."

She gave him a cute smile and he felt his cheeks grow warm. She was really very pretty.

"That might be because I've never been here before. Do you work here?"

"Yeah, me and…"

"IF YOUR NOT BUYING, GET OUT!!!" 

He watched her eyes shift curiously over to Aya, a small smile forming on her perfect pink lips. Some of the girls scattered while the others went around asking prices for this or that. 

"Your co-worker doesn't seem too friendly, Omi-kun. Maybe I should leave."

"You don't have to. Aya-kun is always saying that."

He heard some girls come up behind him, asking what he was doing and who was he talking to. He turned to introduce them but when he turned back, Usagi had vanished. Vanished because there was no way she could have left the shop without him seeing her.

"Why were you talking to yourself, Omi-kins?" 

"Maybe he was talking to the flowers?"

Okay, that confused him. Talking to himself? What?

"Huh?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

He had seen her. She had actually talked to someone. After a year of being alone someone had actually seen her. She squealed. If she could find someway to hide the gashes maybe she could talk to him again. Maybe…maybe what? Maybe they could have a relationship? Oh who was she fooling. She couldn't hide the gashes and he would think it odd she was always in her pajamas. Not to mention he'd be locked up for talking to himself and seeing things. Great. Now she was dejected. Sighing she sat down on a park bench and pouted. Well, it was fun while it lasted. She sat there until nighttime filled the sky. Someone sat down next to her so she looked to see who. Had her heart still been beating it would have stopped.

It was him.

It was Mamorou Chiba. The man she had devoted her life to. The man she dreamed about during her whole adolescence. The man whom she had risked her life time and time again to protect, sitting next to her on the bench.

How she wanted to strangle him.

How she wanted to wrap her slender bloody hands around his pathetic neck and squeeze till there was nothing left. He wouldn't be able to fight it. He couldn't touch her. So why didn't she do it? She was afraid he'd become a ghost and she'd be stuck with him. She was so lost in glaring at him that she never noticed the other person until they spoke. And then her heart broke again.

"Mamo-chan, thanks for meeting me here. I have great news."

Standing before her was a slender woman with raven hair newly cut to the shoulders. Standing before her was someone once known as her best friend. 

Rei.

"I went to doctor and they said…I'm pregnant! The baby's due three months after the wedding. Isn't that wonderful?"

She couldn't believe it. Rei would never do something like this. Rei…yes she would. Those two had been attracted to each other since the beginning. And Rei didn't know what he had done. None of the girls knew. No one but him and her but she was dead and he wasn't talking. He spoke and his voice grated against her, fists tightening unconsciously.

"That's great. Why don't we go back to my place and practice making more?"

She wanted to hit him. She would have hit him but Rei had to say what she said.

"I wish Usagi were here. I miss her so much and we made a promise once to be each other's baby's Godparent. I just…I just don't understand why she did it. Everything was going perfectly, she had saved the world from Chaos, you had come back to her…I…I just miss her."

He wasn't saying anything. That was never a good sign. She got a little closer to him, waiting for his response to Rei's sorrows. She didn't have to wait long.

"I miss her too. I will never understand why she did it. If only she had of called me, *told* me she was feeling depressed…"

That was all she heard. Her body was trembling and the blood was pouring out much more then normal. That lying bastard. That filthy lying son of a bitch. 

She screamed.

She screamed and phased to another part of the park, collapsing in a pool of blood and tears. Sobs shook her small frame as she screamed obscenities into the night air.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

They had been asked to patrol the park. That there was some rapist out on the loose and that this was where he liked to attack. They had found him all right. He had been raping a ten-year-old behind some bushes in the back of the park. They had taken care of him but lost the girl. She had run off crying after they pulled the man off her. Now all Omi wanted to do was go to sleep. That's when they heard someone crying and screaming cuss words at an alarming rate. Naturally they followed it.

"I hear it but I don't see anything. It sounds female."

"Wait, I see something. It's a girl and she's loosing a lot of blood." They followed Ken and the heap of girl looked oddly familiar to Omi. Pink pajamas…

"Usagi!"

"What are you two looking at? Aya, can you see anything?"

"…No." 

Why did people keep saying that? He knew he wasn't seeing things and Ken-kun saw her too. Anyway, it didn't matter. His new friend was loosing blood and by the looks of it probably wouldn't make it. She didn't seem to be aware of them so he reached out and touched her arm. Or tried anyway.

"What the…?"

His hand went right through her.

"You can't touch me."

"What?"

"You can't touch me Omi-kun. You can't touch me but I can touch you."

To prove her point she sat up and touched his cheek. The sensation was soft and barely there and the strangest feeling of ice and heat emitted itself from her fingertips.

"How?"

"Where are you bleeding miss?"

The smile she gave them was sad and wistful. She held out both arms palm up and he cringed when he saw the two perfect lacerations going from wrist to elbow. Behind him Yohji continued to ask what was happening and where the voice was coming from. He noticed Ken's eyes widen and turned to see what was wrong. 

The blood was disappearing.

"There's a lot I should explain to you. Is there somewhere we can go?"

"Uh, yea. Follow us."

He was so confused.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

He had dropped Rei off at the shrine and now he was standing on his balcony staring at the stars.

Thinking. Japan was so beautiful at night. The only reason he had stayed instead of going back to America was because of Usa…Usagi…

He had heard the scream. It had been a scream of absolute heartbreak and pain. And it had happened right next to him. He couldn't shake the feeling that it had been Usagi. That couldn't have been true though because she had to be an angel. She had to have forgiven him. She just had to...

He was so sorry.

He hadn't meant for it to happen. He had betrayed her twice and now she was dead. She was dead and it was his fault. If only he had never had that first drink. If he hadn't started drinking the first thing wouldn't have happened and if that hadn't of happened the second sure as hell wouldn't have…he didn't want to lie to the girls but they would never forgive him if they knew the truth. He couldn't even forgive himself. But he wouldn't ruin what he had with Rei. He would just…suffer in silence.

But he was sorry. He was so sorry.


	3. two

~*~*~*~*~*~*Chapter Two~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

She was sitting on the roof of the flower shop thinking over everything that had happened that day. She had started out as an unseen spirit and now her life, or afterlife, was intertwined with the lives of four flower guys. True only two of them could see her but they all could hear her and they had taken her story surprisingly well…for the fact that they were housing a dead girl…

~*~*~*~*~*~Flashback~*~*~*~*~*~

"Okay miss, would you explain what's going on and why Yohji and Aya-kun cant see you?"

He was cute. They all were actually; she wondered how they would take this. Omi came down the basement stairs holding a first aid kit, the confusion still very clear in his eyes. He sat down next to her and pulled out a large roll of gauze.

"Here, I know you said I can't touch you but I can at least hold it steady while you wrap it around your cuts."

"They bother you don't they. If I put this on it will look like its floating in mid-air. You still want that?" He just unrolled the gauze and held it out to her. While she was wrapping one arm she started her story.

"I'm seventeen…well technically I suppose I'm eighteen but you don't age when your like me. Ever since I was fourteen I guess I started traveling down in depression due to…a discovery, but I refused to let it show or bother me. Everything was fine and I had everything I could ever want but then the depression hit hard and I was unprepared and the one person I trusted would help me out of it…"

She was starting to bleed again so she sped up in wrapping the gauze. The one smoking a cigarette finally seemed to notice the floating material as his eyes widened considerably. Before he had a chance to say anything however she finished her story in a rush of words.

"So anyway I took my own life a year ago in three days with a boning knife on the floor of my room. So I'm dead, your talking to a ghost and most people cant see me so its you and Omi that I have no idea why you two can see me…though I'm not complaining."

"Dead?"

"Ghost?"

"Hnn."

"Who was the person you thought would help you?"

"I would rather not discuss it Omi-kun. Please don't make me."

He looked into her eyes and gave her a small smile. Despite her sadness she returned it. He really was a sweet person. She could see a bit of her past self in him.

"So…who is everyone again? Wait! Let me guess. The other person who can see me is Ken so…the red head is Yohji and you are Aya."

Omi and Ken started snickering at the glare her bandages received from the red head. Darn, she really thought she had it. "Um, sorry Aya-kun." She looked over at Yohji to see him not there. A sudden poke at her bandaged arm made her jump so she turned to the right to find the missing Yohji staring in amazement at the floating gauze. He poked them again so she smacked his hand away. He jumped back and stared at his hand.

"You're a ghost?"

She sighed.

"Yes Yohji-kun, I'm a ghost."

"But your eighteen...Are you cute?"

This was going to be interesting.

~*~*~*~*~*~End Flashback~*~*~*~*~*~

She sighed. The sound of a door shutting and soft footsteps sounded from behind her. Turning her head slightly she watched Omi make his way towards her and sit next to her on the ledge. They sat in silence for a few minutes, him chewing on his lip and her fiddling with her bandages.

"I…I still cant believe you're a ghost. I mean, I guess it really hasn't settled in yet, the fact that your…dead. What's it…what's it feel like?" 

"Well…there's always this cold sensation in the air around me. Sometimes the temperature will drop if I'm in a state of extreme anger or sadness. And when someone walks through me or I walk through something its like walking through ice water, for both me and whatever I walked through. I've gotten used to it by now I guess, I don't really notice that stuff anymore."

She looked down at the street below and watched as a few people walked by now and then. Beside her Omi was lost deep in thought as he stared straight ahead into the night sky. She could feel the warmth of being alive generate off his body making her long to be held by him, just so she could be enveloped in that warmth once again. Her body went rigid with that last thought and her pale eyes glared out into the darkness. There was no way she was going to start thinking like that. She was dead damn it, she had no right to try for the attention of a living being. 

Especially one like Omi.

"You okay Usagi?"

He went to touch her shoulder but stopped halfway remembering that he couldn't. She sent him a small smile before slowly phasing out of view and reappearing in a darkened bedroom. Walking up to the figure curled snuggly under the covers she peered down at the sleeping face and frowned.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Omi lay in bed staring up at the slowly rotating ceiling fan, thoughts of a certain blonde ghost stuck in his head. 

She was hurting. 

She was hurting and there was obviously something keeping her here. And for the strangest reason he wanted to help her. Sadness and anger wasn't who she really was, he just knew. Deep down he knew that she was meant to smile and fill the world with joy. So what had happened that caused such a turn around. What important info was she keeping from them? There was much more to her story then she let on and he wanted to find out what it was. 

She had said that no one had ever seen her before so why could he? Did that mean he was supposed to do something? Something like helping her? Arrg! Now his head was starting to hurt. Closing his eyes he decided to think about it later. But a few last thoughts crossed his mind before he succumbed to sleep.

Where had she gone too? And would she come back?

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

She moved a strand of raven hair off his forehead and stared intently into his face. 

He was so handsome.

She smiled sadly and traced his jaw line with one moonlight pale finger. His body rolled onto his back, mumbling incoherent words into the air. She traced his lips and leaned over inches from kissing him…

"Rei-chan…"

Hissing she pulled back as if burned and glared dangerously at his peaceful expression. Crystalline teardrops slid noiselessly down her cheeks and white gauze turned crimson.

"Why? Why Mamo-chan? Why did you do it? I thought you loved me! And why can't I stop loving you? Why can't I just hate you, Mamo-chan? I have every damn right to hate you, and I try. Oh Gods I try Mamo-chan but…but…(sob)…why…?"

Her body fell limply to the floor and disappeared into the darkness. Mamorou sat upright in the bed gasping, a pained look on his face. Clenching his fist he shut his eyes, a lone tear cascading down.

"Usako…" 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ 

Yohji awoke earlier then he would have liked to so he rolled over to try and get some more sleep. After tossing and turning for some time he finally gave up and decided to get a glass of water from kitchen. Deciding against the use of a robe he made his way silently down the hall rubbing his eyes tiredly. The sounds of pots and pans filled the air as he got closer to his destination. 

"How the hell do you wake up this early Omi…uh…Omi…?" 

No one was in the small kitchen. Well, no one except him and that floating butcher knife. He blinked. 

"ARRGGG!!!!!!!" 

"Yohji-kun! Calm down its just me…its"

Holy shit! Now it was talking to him! He flattened himself up against the wall and watched knife. A soft sigh filled the air and the knife lowered its self onto the cutting board next to some…bacon. He noticed the eggs and cheese and other breakfast items set out around the counter. White gauze floated slightly closer to him and it was then that the happenings of the previous night flashed through his memory. There was nothing to be afraid of; it was just a ghost. Heh.

"Yohji-kun…are you okay?" 

"Yeah. Sorry. I didn't mean to freak out like that. I guess I thought last night was a dream or something." 

He ran a hand through his hair and threw a smile in the direction of the bandages while making his way to the table.

"What'cha making?"

"Omelets. Its one of the only things I'm fairly good at making. Most of the time anyway. But since I'm dead I don't have to worry about food poisoning, do I." 

Yohji sweatdropped at the last comment she made, not being able to tell whether she was serious or not. She seemed to know what she was doing as she continued where she left off in cutting the bacon into small bits though. It was slightly unnerving however, to watch the food, pans and cutlery hover about the countertops and move about the stove withought any visible help aside from two floating bandages.

"So…what do you normally do with your time? Haunt people? I can tell you right now if I was a ghost I'd haunt a couple people."

"Somehow Yohji-kun, I get the feeling that if you were a ghost you'd spend every waking moment hanging out in women's changing rooms and showers."

She was very perceptive. She'd only known him what, a couple hours? Ah well, she was probably right. A plate with a fluffy looking omelet slid across the table in front of him followed by a cup of coffee and a pack of cigarettes.

"You do drink coffee, don't you Yohji?"

He shook his head yes. She really was thoughtful, he wished he could see her. And why was it that only Ken and Omi *could* see her. Hell, why was she even a ghost anyway. He didn't believe she was being punished for something, she didn't seem like a bad person. So why…

"Aren't you going to try it? I'm sure its not *that* bad."

"Wha? Oh, heh, sorry."

He cut a piece and popped it in his mouth. It was actually really good! He smiled in her general direction and cut another piece. The room seemed to radiate a certain warmth as he could feel her smile beam down on him.

"You really think its good! Oh! What till Mako-chan hears about this! She'll be so…proud…"

The warmth in the air dropped to freezing in a matter of seconds. The chair across from him skidded out a bit and a soft thud filled the room.

"Usagi? You okay?"

The silence that greeted him made him think she had left the room but the chill in the air must have meant she was still around. Finally she sighed sadly and got up to fix more breakfast, the room beginning to return to its natural temperature but still a cool breeze drifted around him. They sat in silence for awhile, him finishing his food and her laboring over her cooking before she spoke, her voice soft and yearning for a time she could never have again.

"I've always been bad at cooking. No. I sucked. Nothing was worse then my attempt at baking cookies. But everyone smiled and ate them despite the stomach cramps they'd receive later. Mako-chan, she was a great cook. Her dream was to open her own restaurant. Anyway, she was always trying to get me to be better. Teach me cooking tricks and what not. The first time I ever made an omelet for her it came out looking something like a disfigured charcoal brisket. She ate it anyway, that's how great a friend she was. She got food poisoning a few hours after that and I felt so bad I swore to myself the next time I made an omelet for her, or any dish for that matter, that it would be edible and that for once in my life no-one would get sick. None of them knew how hard I was working. My poor family, how they must have suffered, forced to eat my attempts at cooking and baking day in and day out. I never did get to make anything for Mako-chan before…"

She slid two more omelets onto the table and then took his plate and placed it in the sink. 

"When you actually liked my cooking it was the first time that had ever happened so I guess I just got excited. I guess I sorta forgot the small fact that Mako-chan won't ever get to know about my omelet success."

She slid the last omelet onto the table and began cleaning up her mess. Yohji sat watching the skillet and other dishes clean themselves in the sink. There had to be a reason she was still here. A reason why he and the other guys knew she existed. She was suffering so much and for some reason it hurt him to know she was hurting. He didn't know what to say but thankfully at that moment Omi chose to wander in.

Omi could smell something delicious cooking in the kitchen as he got ready for school so he sped up the process and quickly made his way down the hall. Expecting to see Aya he was surprised to see Usagi standing over the sink washing dishes. Then he noticed Yohji and his surprise went to shock.

"Yohji? What are you doing up? Its 7:30 in the morning."

"I knew that there was a young lady with us who needed my presence to keep her company."

He snorted. Honestly, how long had Miss Usagi had to put up with that.

"I'm really sorry you had to put up with him Miss Usagi. Normally his lazy butt doesn't crawl out of bed until noon."

She smiled at him and the chill in the room seemed to disappear. He wondered what had happened to make her drop the temperature in the first place. She then handed him a glass of orange juice and pointed to the omelets.

"Oh! I didn't even notice them. Gomen nasai."

"I hope you like them."

She plopped herself into a chair next to him and watched him take a bite. 

"This is really good Miss Usagi. Thank you."

"Please, call me Usagi or better yet, Usa-chan. Oh! Yohji, you asked me what I normally do to waste time. Normally I hang out at the park and watch people. Sometimes I check-up on my friends and family, just to see how they're doing. A lot of the time though I go back home and lay on my bed, looking through old pictures. You see, after I died my mother refused to do anything to my room so it's stayed the same for the last year. Almost everyday she goes in keeps it clean. She believes I'm still there because I often move stuff around when I go through it. So for the most part I don't have anything to do."

It must have been so hard on her mom and for her to say all that stuff so nonchalantly. She was acting so cheerful now, like everything was fine. How bored she must get and how depressing. Wait. He had an idea.

"You can come to school with me!"

Her entire face lit up and he blushed but for some reason he felt really good to know he had made her smile like that. 


	4. three

AN: **bows** I am SOOO sorry this is late!!! Its been rather hectic, what with me getting kicked out of my highschool and what not o.O But its all good now and I'm back at the stupid school so yeah ^-^ 

Okay, the chapter's probably the shortest ^^;; but its better then nothing right??? So here you go!

~*~*~*~*~*~Chapter three*~*~*~*~*~

The school was slightly smaller then the one she had previously been at and already butterflies were forming in here stomach. Even in death she hated this place and now she was beginning to wonder what had possessed her to come back.

"Usagi? What's the matter? You're just standing there."

Oh yeah. Him. Well, as long as she stayed by his side nothing could go wrong. And besides, it was not like anyone could see her anyway. She smiled at him and skipped up the stairs ready to face the day.

When they reached his locker she looked around the somewhat crowded halls and at the few students loitering around talking to friends and teachers. A familiar weight grew in her stomach as her mind began to travel back in time. 

"Usagi?"

"…Oh, wha?"

Omi gave her an odd look to which she blushed and laughed nervously. She needed to be more careful about letting her mind wander.

"Are you sure your okay Usagi? You keep spacing off and…"

"Um, Omi-kun? You might not want to talk to me too much in here."

"What? Why?"

"Yo! Omi! Why are you talking to thin air?"

She watched his cheeks burn red as he mumbled something incoherent under his breath and grabbed the rest of his things. He looked so cute when he was embarrassed she just wanted to hug him. Whoa! Scratch that last thought! Now was not the time to be drooling over *living* boys and if she didn't focused she was going to loose…him. She looked around the deserted halls as the sound of a bell died off over head. Great. She lost him. Well if this wasn't a good way to start off the day then she didn't know what was. Sighing at her blonde-headedness she set to the task of looking in class room windows, a much easier task said then done seeing as how most of the classrooms didn't have plain old doors they had the sliding ones…without windows.

She sighed again. This was going to be a long day.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Thirty minutes later Usagi was banging her head against some lockers. Why did this school have so many rooms?! She had phased in and out of all eighteen of them in just this hallway and there were still five other hallways on just this floor. She hadn't even come close to checking out the second floor. The school had looked so small on the outside so this was completely unfair. False advertising! That's what this was! Why, if she had been living the school board would definitely hear about this. But because she wasn't of the living she now had to resort to beating her head against the locker.

Thank God she couldn't feel it.

How the heck did she loose him this quickly? What he do, vanish? She couldn't just phase over to him because she didn't know where he was and that just brought her back to her main dilemma. 

Where the heck was he?!?!

Halting her process of putting a dent in the locker she leaned against it and thought. Wait! Maybe if she tried thinking about him she could phase over to wherever he was! Yes. She'd try that. Putting an image of him in her mind she closed her eyes and let her body fade into its surroundings. No sooner had she vanished then she reappeared in a slightly humid area. Strange, normally schools were cold but this felt like she had stepped into a sauna. Opening her eyes she squeaked. She was inside the boys shower room! Male voices started coming closer to the open shower where she happened to be standing in the middle of so she freaked and momentarily forgot that no one could see her. Of course Omi and Ken could see her so…eek! She dove behind the only curtain in the area just as about five boys walked in. Standing quietly in the secluded shower her mind raced. How did she end up in here?! She had been trying to get to Omi not her own personal peep show. Unless this happened to be the place that was…Holding her breath and blushing deeply she peered out from behind the curtain and looked to see if the blue-eyed blonde was among the showering guys. After doing a quick scan of all there faces (and keeping her eyes above neck level) she pulled herself behind the curtain and let out the breath she had been holding. 

He wasn't in here.

Mumbling to herself incoherently she figured she'd try to find him again. What else could happen? Oh…there was always the boy's bathroom. Letting out a small curse she concentrated as hard as she could and soon the sensation of fading away took over.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Omi looked up from his calculus for what seemed like the hundredth time in the last forty-five minutes. Where could she be? She had been standing next to him when he got his books so he had just assumed she would follow him to his calculus class. But when he sat down the petite blonde was no where in sight. So what happened? 

"Tsukinyono, are you waiting for someone? That's about the twelfth time you've looked up at the door. Or perhaps I'm boring you. Is that it?"

He flushed and looked guiltily up at his teacher. "Gomen nasai Tanaka-san. I won't do it again."

"See to it that you don't. Now as I was saying…"

Tanaka continued to drone on but Omi tuned him out. Busying himself with the current math problem he was stuck on he almost missed the soft voice calling his name. His head snapped up in the direction of the door and there stood the object of his current worried thoughts. 

"Usagi!"

"Tsukinyono! If you insist on disturbing my class and me then *I* insist you take your stuff and wait the rest of the fifteen minutes outside in the hall. Go!"

He murmured an apology while gathering his stuff and making his way outside, Usagi following behind him.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to get you in trouble."

"Its alright Usagi, that man's got it in for me anyhow. What happened though? Where were you?"

He watched in amusement as her normally colorless cheeks took on a blushing pink. Her whitish blue eyes darted to the floor and pale hands fiddled with each other. This was interesting.

"Usagi…?"

"Well you see, I wasn't paying attention to you when you went off to your classroom and after thirty minutes of searching through eighteen different rooms I decided to try a different approach of searching and…"

"And…?"

"And the first try didn't work so I tried again and on that try I found you."

The sentence came out in a rush of words so quickly he almost didn't catch it. He was about to ask her what happened on her first try and just what exactly was it that she did but the bell rang signaling second hour.

"So what do you have next?"

"History. We're supposed to be getting a new teacher today. The other one had a baby and decided to leave teaching."

They walked up the stairs and down past a couple doors before arriving at their destination. Omi sat in his usual seat up front while Usagi sat on the window seal watching as the students filed in. The tardy bell rang and the room quieted down as the classroom door opened to reveal an attractive older woman in her late twenties. Emerald hair was pulled half up in a bun the rest hanging freely against her purple business suit and she carried with her a small black briefcase. Garnet orbs locked with Usagi's blue ones before turning away and addressing the class.

"Good morning. I shall be your teacher for the remainder of this year or until decided otherwise. My name is Meiou Setsuna but Setsuna-san is fine." 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Rei sighed as she looked into her tea. Risking a chance she glimpsed up at her fiancée and sighed again. He had been sitting there staring absently into his coffee ever since she got there.

"Mamo-chan, what's wrong? You know you can tell me anything. I love you."

She reached out and took his hand. He stared down at it before pulling away and standing up from the table. 

"I've got to go or I'll be late to the hospital. I've got a surgery in about an hour. Don't forget we've got a reservation at The Sushi Bar at six. Take care and I'll see you tonight."

"Mamo-chan…" 

"Don't call me that!"

The outburst was so sudden Rei felt the sting of tears prick her eyes. He shrugged into his jacket and stood at the door before calling out a brief goodbye and walking out.

Rei dropped her head into her hands and sobbed. Something was wrong. Ever since last night at the park he had been more distant. He was beginning to act the way he had when they'd found out Usagi had killed herself. He locked himself up and it wasn't until Motoki broke down the door that he got better. 

"Oh Mamo-chan, why are you doing this now…?"

Outside in the elevator Mamoru took out his wallet and pulled out a worn photo from behind a picture of Rei. He stared down at the image and a pair of cerulean eyes happily stared back, a younger version of himself wrapped around the smiling blonde. He bit back a sob and quickly put the picture back.

"Usako…"

He couldn't stop the tears from falling.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

__


	5. four

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Usagi was frustrated. She couldn't tell if Setsuna had looked *at* her or just in her general direction. If she *had* seen her she was doing a pretty good job of not showing it. She would breeze right past her as she lectured on about the Middle Ages as if no one was there and her eyes never strayed from the students.

"I want all of you to do some research on the middle ages tonight. Bring back two pages typed or four pages written on any subject dealing with it. You may either start now during the last ten minutes of class or you may talk quietly amongst yourselves."

As she walked past Usagi a small piece of paper fluttered from her hands and landed on the window seal next to her. When she kept walking and took no notice of it Usagi looked down. Written neatly on the top in the guardians neat flourishing handwriting was her name. She felt like laughing and crying all at the same time. Setsuna could see her! Carefully she flipped the paper over and began to read the writing on the back.

__

I wish I could say its good to see you but under the circumstances it's not that great. Meet me at the large fountain in the middle of the park at midnight. There are some things we must discuss.

Setsuna

The message was short and deprived of any major information but her curiosity was defiantly piqued. But then again, Setsuna always had a way of doing that. The bell rang and the students piled out but Usagi stood by the door and stared at Setsuna. She still didn't acknowledge her though so she was forced to leave with Omi. The two of them walked to class but she was too restless about what was going to happen that night to want to sit in another class. Pulling Omi into a space between the lockers she began whispering.

"I'm gonna wander around the city, okay. You still have four more classes to go and personally I don't think I could make it. Just thought I should warn you before you worry where I disappeared too. Bye."

"But…!"

Omi stared into the empty air before him. It didn't matter if he knew where she was or not, he was going to worry about her. Sighing, he quickly headed off to his next class so he wouldn't be late.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Usagi reappeared outside of an ice cream shop somewhere outside the city. She had discovered this place when she had been out wandering around a few months before and when no one was looking she would sneak little bites of ice cream. Across from it was an open soccer field and today it looked like there was a soccer lesson. Looking closer at the teacher she squealed. It was Ken! Disappearing and then reappearing inside the soccer net she decided to have a little fun. The kids were practicing kicking balls into the goal and Ken's attention was diverted so every time a ball came near her she would send it flying right back to them. After doing this for a few minutes the kids finally realized that wasn't supposed to happen. A little girl with brown pigtails walked up to Ken and tugged at his shorts.

"Hai Sakiko?"

"Uh…sensei? Kei, Hiroshi, Keiko, Seiichi and I keep kicking the balls into the net but um…every time they look like they're about to go in something throws them out. Kei-kun hit it in there two times already but it keeps coming back at him. I think the goal is possesied…pocessd…po…I think its got a demon living in it."

Ken finally looked up at the goal and she blew him a kiss and gave him a wink before falling over in a fit of giggles. Ken sweatdropped and turned back to Sakiko.

"I'll go over there and um, talk to it. You kids stay back here."

The kids huddled together as far away from the goal as they could and watched their teacher go to try and talk to the 'demon' with wide eyes. Ken stepped up to Usagi and glared at her.

"What are you doing?!"

"Gomen nasai Ken-kun, I couldn't resist. I won't do it again, I promise. Let me stay and watch. I can be like the team cheerleader. I tried out for that once but I tripped and fell on the head cheerleader causing her to break her ankle. Oh! But I promise I wont break the kids ankle's I'll just…hmm"

She pouted as she tapped her chin thoughtfully and she looked so cute doing it that he smiled. When she noticed him smiling at her she smiled too.

"Don't worry about it. Of course you can stay and watch, but I thought you went to school with Omi-kun?"

"Yeah, I did but, I couldn't stand school then and I can't stand it now. After two classes of just sitting there, staring at cheese would have been more fun."

"I see…I better go tell my team that the 'demon' is gone."

The two of them walked back to the group of huddled kids and Usagi giggled at the adoring looks Ken was receiving from the two females of the group. The other one, Keiko, a little girl with straight black hair tied in a ponytail stepped up to Ken, her large brown eyes staring widely.

"Did you get rid of the demon sensei? Can we continue playing soccer now?"

"Hai. The demon has promised to just watch from now on."

One of the boys with messy brown hair and a sprinkle of freckles walked over to Keiko and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I wasn't scared Keiko. I could have gotten rid of that demon for you."

"That's alright Kei. Sensei is bigger and stronger. You should let him take care of stuff like that."

They were so cute! She sat back on the grass and watched the small group play. Hiroshi, a cute little boy with spiky black hair and both front teeth missing, couldn't tie his shoes so he kept tripping over the laces and falling into his teammates.

"Oy! *Watch* it Hiro!"

"Gomen!"

And someone would kick Keiko the ball and she'd take one look at it coming her way and run screaming in the other direction.

"AAAAAAAA!!!!"

"It barely moved! What's wrong with you?!"

"What's wrong with me Seiichi, is that you sent that ball flying so hard I would've been *dead***** right now!"

"Oh get over yourself!"

Sakiko and Kei were brother and sister and the two of them wouldn't stop arguing over every little thing.

"Kei you idiot! Why didn't you get that?! It was right in front of you!"

"I *would* have gotten it if *someone* hadn't been yelling at me for a mistake I made *yesterday*."

"Oh so what? Your saying its *my* fault?!"

"If the shoe…"

"Kei! Sakiko! Would you two just shut up and play!!"

Seiichi was a bit grumpy since he seemed to be the moving target of Hiroshi's klutz attacks but she could tell they were all having a great time. She really admired the way Ken stayed calm and playful throughout all the drama a small group of seven year-olds managed to create. All too soon it seemed the lesson was over and parents were there to pick their kids up. When everyone was gone she helped Ken pick up the soccer balls and put them in the bags.

"You're a great teacher, you know. Those kids really love you."

He ducked his head as he picked two stray balls to hide a blush. She smiled. He was so modest and good-natured. It probably took a lot to make him mad.

"It's nothing, really. I just love kids. I think there so honest and fun to be around. They don't hide stuff and they're not really all that deceitful."

His voice came out sounding bitter and she looked up at him startled. He smiled sheepishly but didn't say anymore so she let it drop. This time anyway. The balls were all picked up now so he began to make his way to a parked motorcycle. She stopped and stared at it curiously as he got on and looked at her.

"Need a lift anywhere? I've got to get back to the flower shop before Aya hunts me down and skins me. He doesn't like it when I'm late. Hell, he doesn't like a lot of things."

"I've noticed that he doesn't seem to smile. I don't really have anywhere to be and there's nowhere I really want to go so I guess I'll go back to the flower shop with you but um…I've never been on one of those and truthfully, even though I'm dead and all, I'm kinda scared."

She nibbled on her lip in anxiety and once again he was hit with the sudden thought that she looked cute, so he smiled reassuringly at her. Throwing on his helmet he turned to her again.

"I promise you nothing will happen to you…it'll happen to me. But think of it as riding a rollercoster. You're always a little scared before you get on but once you do its really exciting and your glad you went. So hop on and wrap your arms around my waist."

Nodding her head she slowly got on behind him and did as he told. He started off and she squealed, wrapping her arms tighter him and laying her cheek against his back. Her body radiated a strange sensation of being hot and cold all at the same time and it caused a fluttery feeling in his stomach. Brushing it off he sped up and smiled at the sounds of her laughter.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was 12:36 in the afternoon and Yohji still hadn't dragged his ass out of bed after he decided to go back, not to mention Ken was fifteen minutes late and Aya had other places he'd rather be then watering this damn cactus. Slamming the watering can down he made up his mind to grab Yohji from his bed and drag him down there despite the fact that he normally slept in the nude. Just then the door flew open and Ken came strolling in talking to…nothing. Okay, so maybe Ken had finally snapped. Ken looked up at him and smiled. He was about to say something when a female voice from seemingly nowhere started speaking in one continuo's breath.

"Sorry he's late Aya-kun I'd never been on a motorcycle before and it was *so* much fun that I didn't want to get off and so Ken-kun and I just drove around for awhile before he remembered that he was supposed to be here at the flower shop so please don't skin him." Skin him? What the…? Who was…? Oh. Usagi. That's right, there was a ghost of some dead girl living with them now. 

"Hnn. Mrs. Sato wants an arrangement of red roses, baby's breath and Sakura blossoms for her daughter. Mr. Hoo wants a bouquet for his wife with any type of flower as long as it has gardenias in it. Then you need to make two more arrangements for Mrs. Watanabe. One of them with gladiolus's, irises and heather. The other with larkspur, lisianthus, Queen Anne's lace, and snapdragon. Got that?"

"Um…"

"I thought as much. It's written down on the note pad. Also, the daffodils and the lily's need to be watered. I'm going out."

Having said all that he took of his apron and left. Ken went behind the counter and grabbed a delicate glass vase shaded a slightly lavender color. Usagi leaned against the counter and watched him began with the first arrangement. Every flower he put into the vase was done with precise thought and she clapped when he tied a white ribbon around it for a finishing touch.

"Wow. You play soccer *and* make flower arrangements. Is there anything you can't do?"

"I can't sing."

"That's okay, I'm not too good at it either. I tried modeling once too but that didn't go to well. My swimsuit had been eaten by moths without me knowing it so when I pulled it out the day of the shoot, it had holes all over it. I had to sew little yellow bows onto my pink bathing suit to hide the holes. I was devastated."

"Did you still go out there?"

"Of course I did! But it didn't really matter, the camera the guy was using had been possessed by a youma and every girl he shot was trapped inside."

He looked up from the bouquet and stared at her strangely. "What? Youma?"

"Yeah, you know, those absurdly almost always scantly clad female demons that are created from everyday things that try to suck your life energy out of you. But luckily Sailor Moon was there to save the day."

He continued to stare at her strangely before something registered. He tapped a gardenia against his chin in deep thought.

"I remember now. It seems like so long ago, nothing like that has happened now a day. Its almost as if the sailor scouts…no, you still hear about the sailor scouts every now and again when they stop robbers and what not. But Sailor Moon just kinda slipped into oblivion. I wonder what happened." 

She got unusually quite after his comment so he looked up through the stems of flowers to see her staring sadly into the counter top, un-spilt tears building up in the corners of her eyes. He called her name softly but she didn't seem to hear him so he reached out to touch her but his fingers went through and she jumped startled and stared at him.

"I'm sorry, did you say something to me?"

"Not really, you just got so quite I thought something was wrong." 

She gave him a small smile to reassure him and shook her head 'no' but he could tell she wasn't okay. Deciding against questioning it he went back to his work and the two remained silent.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was 11:30 and Usagi was starting to get nervous. She decided she would walk to the park instead of phasing there so she could take her time. As she got closer to the fountain she saw Setsuna sitting on the edge of it, her hand playing idly in the cool water. As soon as Usagi got close enough she turned her head and stood, a small sad smile forming on her lips.

"Usagi…you're actually on time. This would be, what? The first?"

Usagi smiled at the joke even though it was mostly true. She walked the rest of the way to her and sat down, Setsuna following suit.

"There are many things I need to tell you, some good some bad. Are you prepared?"

She took a deep breath and nodded her head yes. Maybe Setsuna would help her finally be at rest. 

__ __


End file.
